Terrapins

FEATURED ARTICLES ABOUT TERRAPINS - PAGE 5

bobp@herald-mail.com COLLEGE PARK, Md. - It reads like Michael Myers' or Freddy Krueger's victims list. Kansas State ... Alabama ... Pittsburgh ... Northwestern ... Colorado State ... Purdue ... Maryland. Yes, Maryland. It's the list of teams from top-of-the-line athletic conferences that have fallen prey to the fairest underdogs in the land - the Mid-American Conference. That laundry list of toe-stubbing is about all the pep talk Maryland coach Ralph Friedgen has been using to get the Terrapins ready to face Eastern Michigan.

Maryland coach returns for Mid-Maryland camp Maryland volleyball coach Janice Kruger isn't a Hagerstown native. In fact, Nebraska's not even close to here. cont. from sports page Yet every summer, she comes to town for the Mid-Maryland Volleyball Camp at St. Maria Goretti High School as if she's returning to a class reunion. "I get a lot of these girls (that are helping now) down at my camp," Kruger said Tuesday while watching several dozen students go through drills.

Maryland was banking on its savings account. The Terrapins men's basketball team figured it had a nice little nest egg of respect built up after all the years of success it had enjoyed under coach Gary Williams. But when it came down to it, Maryland's respect check bounced. It's no secret that Maryland's men's basketball team was upset by being bypassed for an NCAA Tournament bid. In fact, the Terrapins wore their pouts on their sleeves (they would have if their shirts had any)

bobp@herald-mail.com COLLEGE PARK, Md. - You could call it a game of chicken. The Peach Bowl may be decided on which team flinches first - Maryland's offense or Tennessee's defense. The game itself will be measured by yardage, but a couple of feet will make all the difference in the world. That's all the Terrapins say they need - just two feet ... that's 24 inches - to make a difference on Tuesday in the 35th anniversary bowl game. The Volunteers' style of pass defense makes that arm's length of space oh-so-important to Maryland if it hopes to have a diversified defense.

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) -- Nothing about the big numbers Marissa Coleman put up the other day surprised Jeff Walz. After all, he did help recruit her to Maryland. Now it's his job to stop her. Standing between the Terrapins and another Final Four trip is second-year Louisville coach Walz, an assistant on the Maryland team that won the 2006 national title behind then-freshmen Coleman and Kristi Toliver. "Those kids, they're still friends of mine -- they still call and talk," Walz said Sunday.

COLLEGE PARK, Md. - Playing a 60-minute game is the gold standard for football teams. That has been the case for the University of Maryland this season. The goal was to play on every down and every snap like it was the first. The No. 21 Terrapins went down to the last second again on Saturday, this time for a very important 14-13 win over Miami. It has been their trademark, considering they have won their last five games by a total of 13 points. But when it came to punching in for this 60 minutes of work, Maryland's defense used a time clock while the offense employed an egg timer.

bobp@herald-mail.com COLLEGE PARK, Md. - On a good day, E.J. Henderson can say it all without ever opening his mouth. Listen closely when Maryland's senior linebacker is on the field. Sssssssssssss ... Pop! Henderson plays a violent game of charades. His last turn will come Tuesday when the Terrapins face Tennessee in the Peach Bowl. "Ssssssssss" is the sound of Henderson whistling past while chasing down opposing ball carriers. "Pop!" is the emphatic punctuation of the hit and tackle he makes to stop the runner in his tracks.

bobp@herald-mail.com COLLEGE PARK, Md. - Mario Merrills' wish came true on Saturday. "I would love to get the ball 25 to 30 times a game," said the University of Maryland's new starting tailback at last month's media day. "I think I can add something to the offense. " Somebody was listening. Merrills was the beneficiary of every single one of the carries he asked for - all 30 of them - in his first start. And he really did something for the Terrapins' offense, too, going for 149 yards, a touchdown and a two-point conversion in Maryland's 23-20 victory over Navy.

bobp@herald-mail.com COLLEGE PARK, Md. - It was time to cue the scary music. There were a little more than eight minutes remaining in the game. The University of Maryland football team was leading was close to the lead. And then suddenly, the defense hit the Twilight Zone. The doors flew off the bus as if it were spinning in the Wizard of Oz's tornado. It happened against Clemson in Week 2 of the season and again against West Virginia in Week 3. But Saturday, in Week 5 against Virginia, Maryland answered the bell and locked the doors.

COLLEGE PARK, Md. -- Alarm clocks at the University of Maryland don't ring. Instead, they go "thud. " It's hard to say, but it's quite possible the daylights were scared into the Terrapins with a 31-0 loss to Virginia three weeks ago. "Maybe it woke us up as a team," Maryland coach Ralph Friedgen said. "I can look back at (Oct. 4's game at Virginia) now and it is still a very tough loss. I hope we'll find out as the games go on. " It has been rise and shine for Maryland ever since.